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Resupply: Show patients you care

A. Live. A simple word, but not so simple to achieve. Most HME owners I speak with have a hard time keeping up with who walks in the door, answering incoming calls and taking care of what comes through their fax machines. What about all those customers that you have serviced with supplies in the last two years? They have great value, as do those physicians that are sending you that business.

Most HME owners either have a marketing person to stay in touch with their physicians and referral sources and try to get new ones, or do it themselves. Few have any staff dedicated to calling existing patients for resupply needs. This is important for many categories of your business.

Technology is part of the solution. Technology tells you who needs what and when. Automated contact accomplishes little. People, especially the elderly that are needing medical attention, want and expect live interaction. Too much to expect? I think not. Most of us automatically hang up our phone as soon as it is apparent that it is a robo-call. If you really want to show patients you care and actually generate recurring revenue on your existing base, you must speak to them live.

Patients who are taken care of in a personal way will stay with you and refer their family and friends. If you can prove to referral sources how well you take care of their patients, you will not only keep that referral source but possibly acquire new ones from your competitors. Personal, regular contact with your patients and referral sources is key to your success and the only way to maximize recurring revenue. Those who do not embrace this attitude will struggle and potentially lose patients and referral sources.